Drug-trafficking in South Asia: A Profile by N Manoharan

Sandwiched between the ‘Golden Triangle’ and ‘Golden Crescent,’ the major global producers of psychotropic drugs, the South Asian region is the principal transit route for psychotropic drugs. The trafficking of heroin that is smuggled to western countries, added to locally produced drugs like cannabis and opium are the major drugs of abuse in the countries of the region. The strong nexus between the terrorist organizations, drug-traffickers and money launderers in South Asia has entrenched this menace. Porous borders between the countries and lax plus corrupt surveillance and monitoring mechanisms have exacerbated the trafficking and abuse of drugs in the belt extending from Southeast Asia to Central Asia. Most of the nations in the region are party to one or the other of the UN Conventions on drug trafficking, but their provisions are not incorporated into the domestic legal framework. Consequently, the legal provisions applicable in these countries are not sufficient to deal with the complexities of this trade. The following tabulation provides an overview of drug-trafficking in the region.

Country	Status	Major drugs involved	Source of drugs	Destination	Enforcement Authority	Status of global conventions and bilateral agreements
Bangladesh	Producer and Transit country	cannabis, heroin, opium, marijuana, codeine-based cough syrups like Phensedyl	Myanmar, India, and local production in northwestern districts	India by land; and Western countries through Chittagong port and Dhaka airport	Department of Narcotics Control (DNC); National Narcotics Control Board (NNCB)	Signatory to all the three conventions (the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs-1961, the Convention on Psychotropic Substances-1971, the UN Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Sunstances-1988). Bilateral agreement with Myanmar
Bhutan	Transit country made use of mostly by insurgents in northeast India	cannabis, heroin	Southeast Asia	India by land and air routes	Customs Department, Ministry of Home Affairs	Signatory to the 1988 Convention
India	Producer and Transit country	opium, heroin, cannabis, pharmaceutical drugs	Southeast and Southwest Asia and local production in central, north and northeast India, and Western Ghats	Western countries	Customs and Excise Department, Department of Revenue, Narcotics Control Board (NCB), Central Bureau of Narcotics (CBN),	Signatory to all three Conventions. Bilateral agreements with 15 countries
Maldives	Transit country	cannabis, heroin	India, Central and Southeast Asia	West Asia, and Europe and for local consumption	Narcotics Control Board (NCB), Drug Control Board (DCB) of Police Headquarters	Ratified all three UN Conventions
Nepal	Producer and Transit country	cannabis, heroin, marijuana, codeine-based cough syrups like Phensedyl	Pakistan, Myanmar, India, and local production	India, and West Europe through land and air routes	Narcotics Drug Control Law Enforcement Unit (NDCLEU)	Ratified the 1961 and the 1988 Conventions and not party to the 1971 Convention.
Pakistan	Producer and Transit country	cannabis, hashish, heroin, opium	Afghanistan, and local production	India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Iran, Turkey and western countries	Anti Narcotics Force	Signatory to all three UN Conventions. MoU with Iran, and bilateral agreement with India
Sri Lanka	Producer and Transit country	cannabis, heroin	Indian sub-continent, and local production	Europe and West Asia	Excise department, National Dangerous Drugs Control Board (NDDCB), Narcotics Bureau of the police	Signatory to all three Conventions


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